Keep Your Children's LEGOs Clean With This Simple Disinfecting Hack

If the pandemic taught us one thing, it's how important it is to disinfect germs from the surfaces around us. One of the biggest things parents everywhere struggle with is getting rid of the constant plethora of germs kids seem to breed and carry with them inherently. It's extremely important for parents to clean and disinfect their children's toys. In fact, according to USA Today, research shows that 80% of soft children's toys secretly harbor dangerous bacteria, 75% of children's toys are never washed, and 25% of them are contaminated by fecal matter. (Gross!)

It doesn't help that fan-favorite toys like LEGO bricks are some of the worst at hiding them, with all their nooks, pegs, and crannies. It's important to clean and disinfect LEGOs periodically, including any brick build that stays put together permanently. According to Martha Stewart, Clorox's scientist and cleaning expert, Mary Gagliardi, advises a simple bleach and water solution to get the job done. However, they must be cleaned by hand – no dishwashers – and you must follow some other basic instructions, which we have for you coming up.

To completely sanitize and disinfect LEGOs, you'll need a couple of plastic basins or containers, towels, a teaspoon of dish detergent, and two teaspoons of disinfecting bleach. Start by completely separating all the pieces and tossing them into one of the plastic bins. Add the teaspoon of dish detergent to the bin with the LEGOs and add hot water, just not too hot. The advice is no hotter than 104 degrees Fahrenheit to avoid melting or warping the plastic. Swirl around the pieces in the solution for three to five minutes before rinsing thoroughly.

Next, wear gloves while making a solution in the second bin made of two teaspoons of disinfecting bleach and one gallon of water. Now dump the bin of LEGOs into the disinfecting solution and leave them submerged for about six minutes. Having the right solution is important because too much bleach may damage the bricks. Drain the solution and rinse several times before laying down the towel and dumping out the LEGOs. You can towel dry them as much as possible, but they'll need some time to air dry completely. LEGO advises not to use an alternative drying solution (e.g. hairdryer, microwave, or even direct sunlight) because this might warp the bricks.

According to Martha Stewart, you should also thoroughly dust and wipe down with disinfecting wipes all LEGOs you have on permanent display about once a month. To do this, you can use a make-up brush to get into all the nooks and crannies without taking it apart, working from the top down. You can use a vacuum cleaner attachment with netting (like pantyhose over the end) to prevent accidents, attached with a rubber band around it, to vacuum the dust up afterward. You can also use a hair dryer on the "cool" setting, to blow it off and away. Then, use disinfecting wipes to thoroughly wipe down all surfaces.

The more your kids play with and share their LEGOs, the more often they should be cleaned and disinfected. You should use your best judgment as to how often they need cleaning, but to kill germs, the pieces should be disinfected using the method we discussed. According to PureWow, if you know or suspect a sick child, try to pay attention to the toys played with so that when the threat has passed, you can clean and disinfect them. Additionally, keeping your child's LEGOs organized and stored in bins will help keep them clean when not in use. LEGOs are a wonderful invention that allows kids use their imaginations to build all kinds of fun and exciting things. Keep your children healthy and happy by keeping LEGOs clean with this simple disinfecting hack!